MEDIA AND PUBLIC OUTREACH:

One of the biggest challenges
facing the Secretariat is how to engage sufficient interest around
the issue, and indeed the negotiations, among NGOs, the general
public and the media. Many NGOs, especially in the North, do not
necessarily understand the direct links to their own mandates and
indeed their potential for influencing the decision-making of their
governments, especially the donors. Likewise, the general public in
unaffected countries is not aware of the truly global implications
of desertification and the extent to which desertification could
indeed touch their own lives. This lack of understanding is in
large part due to the minimal press coverage of the desertification
issue in those regions. Awareness-raising must be in large part
directed to Northern journalists, to alert them to the issues, to
engage their interest and indeed, to point out the possible news
hooks and angles to ensure that news reporting on the issue
improves both in terms of scope and quality. Look for the
Secretariat to begin to expend more energy in the areas of media
and public outreach.

One such activity has already been scheduled. The EarthAction
Network is hosting a one-day briefing for European NGOs on the INCD
on Monday, 25 October 1993 in Brussels. The morning session will
include a briefing by INCD Executive Secretary Arba Diallo. He will
address: the importance of raising awareness about the Convention
among NGOs; the multi-level causes of desertification; and NGO
participation. The afternoon session will include a roundtable
discussion regarding NGO participation, information and
skills-sharing, as well as NGO strategies for INCD-3 and 4. For
more information, contact Johannah Bernstein, EarthAction, Blvd
Brand Whitlock 146, 1200 Brussels. Tel: (32) 2-736-8052. Fax: (32)
2-733-5708.